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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26291344">Last Life, Last Chance</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rhitta/pseuds/Rhitta'>Rhitta</a>, <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheTiredGeneticist/pseuds/TheTiredGeneticist'>TheTiredGeneticist</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Overwatch (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Emily works with animals, F/F, More tags to be added, Part-Time Ballet Instructor Amélie, Surprise Adoption, sticky notes</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 08:08:55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,090</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26291344</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rhitta/pseuds/Rhitta, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheTiredGeneticist/pseuds/TheTiredGeneticist</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A new addition, a new chance.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Emily/Widowmaker | Amélie Lacroix</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Last Life, Last Chance</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Amélie groaned when she woke up to a yellow sticky note in front of her eyes. She was a deep sleeper, so her ever-busy girlfriend had resorted to leaving her notes when she stopped in to make food or drop something off. Notes she seemed to enjoy leaving stuck to Amélie much to her annoyance. Glancing at the clock she realized it was still early evening, and judging by the wet tracks by the door, Emily must’ve just left. She failed to stifle a yawn as she sat up and glanced down at the note.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> "This little kitty just arrived at the clinic but we had no vacant cages, and we can’t put it with someone else until her tests come back, so I'm taking it home for the weekend. I've gone to get some supplies. Back soon. Love you!" </em>
</p><p> </p><p>This was odd for a few reasons. First, Emily was never a cat-person, she preferred dogs, large ones, and the only reason she didn’t have any was because Amé begged her not to. Her anxiety and migraines were bad enough without a loud slobbery mountain of fur bulldozing everything in the apartment, not to mention, Amélie was terribly allergic to dogs. Second, Emily had never brought anything home before, not even to foster. She showed Amé pictures of new arrivals and baby animals almost daily when she got home, but she had never brought any back. </p><p> </p><p>The apartment complex was, at least in writing, a pet-free building, but the rule had never been strictly enforced. A few people had pets, and had for some time. Emily had, perhaps, never allowed one into her own apartment because she had decided on the rule herself, so she couldn’t break her own rules could she?</p><p> </p><p>Third, she had never asked her girlfriend about bringing a cat into the apartment. Emily was a person who never did anything before making sure Amé was comfortable with it. It was one of the many many things that Amélie loved about her, how considerate and kind she was. So why would she leave a cat in a crate and a note? </p><p> </p><p>Amélie slowly sat up, setting the note aside and turning her attention to the crate. There was no movement and no noise coming from it, so the cat was either asleep or petrified. It made Amé curious. </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> She never said I couldn’t take a peek… </em>
</p><p> </p><p>She tried to be as silent as possible as she slipped off of the couch and onto the carpet, moving slowly as she reached for the latch on the crate and unhooked it. No sounds from inside. Not even a hiss. </p><p> </p><p>Once the door was open Amélie sat back, in case the cat bolted, or was aggressive. She wanted to see it, but she would do so on the cat’s terms, no matter how long it took. She was a patient woman, and she could wait. She had been reading before falling asleep, so she simply picked up the book from the end-table and her reading glasses, getting comfortable to wait as she slid the thin-framed glasses onto her nose to pick up where she left off. </p><p>Reading was one of her favorite pastimes now that she didn’t dance. She enjoyed teaching twice a week, but she didn’t dance as a career anymore. Not after everything that had happened. She couldn’t even go to the store without being flagged down by someone wanting to talk to her about her ex husband, or to take her photo. She rarely left the apartment anymore, so reading was a healthy pastime. </p><p> </p><p>She had just begun to get into the book again when she finally heard something coming from the crate. It was, at first, just a soft scrabbling of claws, then soft panting. Amélie could see the shape of the cat moving about, and she remained still to avoid spooking it. She didn’t want to scare it into remaining in the crate. She watched it moving about for a few minutes, before she let her eyes drop back to the book and she continued to read, feigning disinterest as best she could. </p><p> </p><p>According to her watch she read for another hour before she got more results.</p><p> </p><p>“<em> Mew?” </em></p><p> </p><p>It was so soft that Amélie took a moment to realize that the cat had made a sound. It sounded… uncertain, and frightened. She looked up from her book, and froze.</p><p> </p><p>The cat had stuck its head out of the crate and was in the process of stepping out, one paw already on the carpet and the other still hovering as the feline stared at her warily. </p><p> </p><p>The first thing Amé noticed was that she was clearly feral, every muscle taught and prepared to bolt if need be. The second thing she noticed was the condition of its fur, which was tangled, matted and dirty beyond belief. </p><p> </p><p>When Amélie slowly shifted to kneel the cat began to make low, uneasy growling sounds, pressing itself as close to the floor as it could. Amélie set her book down and slowly slid a hand towards the cat, accompanying the motion with a slow blink before leaving her hand about a foot and a half from the growling feline. She then turned her attention back to her book, watching the cat from the corner of her eye.</p><p> </p><p>The slow blink definitely helped, and the growls quieted once she stopped moving and the cat stared up at her with big blue eyes. The cat was visibly trembling, but at least it wasn’t growling anymore. </p><p> </p><p>Once the cat realized that Amélie wasn’t going to move closer and that her hand was being offered to it, the cat slowly unfroze and tentatively took a step forward. Amélie felt her heart clench as the cat finally stepped fully out of the carrier and she got a proper look at the terrible condition it was in. The poor thing had clearly not been able to take care of itself in a long time. Its fur was matted and tangled from head to tail, and so dirty that there was no telling what type of cat it was. </p><p> </p><p>The cat stretched as far forward as it could without falling over, and it tentatively sniffed at Amélie’s offered hand. When Amélie didn’t move or try to grab it, the cat noticeably relaxed enough to sit and look around, taking in the apartment while keeping an eye on the human sitting so close to it. Its posture was stiff, probably from a combination of anxiety and its poor physical condition, and it looked very uncomfortable, but it still seemed curious. </p><p> </p><p>“Are you hungry?” Amélie murmured softly, speaking low and gently to avoid scaring the poor cat. It turned its head back toward her when she started speaking, blinking at her. It seemed to be studying her with those big blue eyes. She wasn’t really expecting an answer. But to her surprise, the feline seemed to deliberately move its head in a way that seemed like a nod.</p><p> </p><p>“<em> D’accord, </em>let’s see what we have for you, hmm?” Amélie smiled gently and got up slowly as the cat watched her, and her heart just about burst when she glanced back on her way into the kitchen, and she found that the stray was following her quietly while still looking around. Amélie didn’t even care that it was leaving little muddy pawprints on the carpet, she could clean those later. All she cared about at present was getting this poor thing some proper food.</p><p> </p><p>The fridge yielded a few options, thanks to leftovers and uncooked ingredients. There was a small bowl of what she believed to be beef liver. She could vaguely remember Emily wanting to cook and eat it with her after-workout smoothie, something about being very good for brain and liver health, she hadn’t been paying very close attention. There was some bacon that hadn’t gotten eaten that morning, and some chicken that was set aside for chicken caesar salad that evening. </p><p> </p><p>“Would you like to choose, little one?” she asked over her shoulder, and she took the soft meow as agreement. She pulled each option out of the fridge and set the containers on the floor, moving to sit a few feet back so the cat would be comfortable to approach. </p><p> </p><p>After a moment the cat padded over to the containers, sniffing each one and seeming to mull the decision over in its little furry head before it sat down and softly nudged the dish of liver with one paw, giving Amélie a soft trill. </p><p> </p><p>“Would you like it raw?” Amé inquired as she took the other two containers and covered them back up, setting them back into the fridge. The cat blinked up at her and moved its head from side to side in a “<em> no” </em> motion. </p><p> </p><p>“Very well, I will cook it for you.” </p><p> </p><p>The cat seemed content, and it padded slowly around the kitchen while Amelie prepared the food for it, moving slowly and somewhat stiffly and letting its tail drag on the floor behind it, still looking pretty miserable. It clearly needed a thorough bathing, and probably to have the worst of the matted fur removed, if it would even allow Amé to touch it. Something to take care of once it had eaten. </p><p> </p><p>“Here you are.” She murmured, setting the dish down, and the cat padded back to her, sniffing at the cut up pieces of cooked liver before settling down and beginning to eat, slowly at first, but quickly inhaling the rest of the pieces as soon as it finished the first mouthful. It was clearly ravenous, probably underweight even if its fur made it look well-fed. </p><p> </p><p>Once it had finished the meal, it sat back and licked its chops, looking up at Amé as she took the dish and set it in the sink to rinse it later. It looked noticeably happier now, but the fur and dirt were clearly still causing it a lot of discomfort. It was very unlikely that the poor thing would be able to sleep or even lie down comfortably until it was clean. </p><p> </p><p>“Would…. You like me to give you a bath?” </p><p> </p><p>The cat tensed visibly, and Amé swiftly put her hands up in a placating manner. “I won’t force you to, I just want you to be able to move and lie down without those matts pulling at you. It hurts, no?” She kept her voice gentle, praying that her offer hadn’t just made the cat afraid of her. </p><p> </p><p>The cat blinked slowly, then it nodded again, looking torn between not trusting Amé and wanting the tangles out.</p><p> </p><p>“I will go run you a warm bath, and if you want me to stop just let me know, <em> oui? </em>” </p><p> </p><p>The cat followed her, a lot more closely now as Amélie made her way to the bathroom, flipping the light on and kneeling next to the bathtub to start running the water. She was used to lukewarm baths, anything warmer made her skin feel like it was burning. She was willing to put herself through some discomfort, however, to make sure the cat didn’t get too cold. Once she was confident that the temperature was perfect she stood up to fetch a large towel and her shampoo. It was mild enough to use, she couldn’t handle anything that was strong-smelling or powerful, it irritated her senses, but it would be perfect for the cat’s condition. </p><p> </p><p>The cat was standing on its back feet, front paws resting on the edge of the tub and watching the water slowly rise, the very tip of its tail twitching. It looked to be contemplating trying to clamber in, but unsure of whether or not it would be able to. </p><p> </p><p>“Want some help?”</p><p> </p><p>Another nod, accompanied by a soft trill.</p><p> </p><p>Amé was already in love with that sound. </p><p> </p><p>The cat let Amélie gently lift it up and set it in the bath, and it sat down, looking at the water and patting at it with one paw as Amé cupped some of the water in her hands and began to wet the fur on its head and shoulders. The cat barely even seemed to notice until she grabbed the shampoo. It looked up from the water and made a soft noise of apprehension at the sight of the bottle, shifting away from Amé to the far side of the tub.</p><p> </p><p>Amélie sighed, there was no way to lie about how unpleasant this would be.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m sorry, <em> pétit, </em> I have to do this. I promise I will try to pull your fur as little as possible, but this <em> will </em> hurt.”</p><p> </p><p>The cat made another soft mewl of distress, hunching its shoulders, but it slowly shuffled back into Amé’s reach, ears flat against its head as it looked away and squeezed its eyes shut.</p><p> </p><p>“I am going to start now, alright?” </p><p> </p><p>A tiny whimper.</p><p> </p><p>Amé squirted some of the shampoo into her hands and got to work. The cat’s muscles tightened every time she touched, and the matts made every movement a struggle. They were even worse than Amélie thought, and she quickly realised she should have dealt with those first, before bathing the poor cat. </p><p> </p><p>“I’m so sorry, little one, I’m sorry…” She murmured, as the cat whimpered in pain. It seemed to have resigned itself, though, resting its head on the rim of the tub tiredly and making no attempt to move. Its pained noises were softer, it had to be so <em>exhausted</em>. </p><p> </p><p>It took an agonizingly long time to work out the least problematic matts, and a liberal amount of Amélie’s expensive hair conditioner to get out as many tangles as possible. Once she realized the conditioner would help, things got a lot easier. The cat still made pained noises, but the tangles started to come out with less fuss.The water was a murky brown now, and Amélie could now see the cat’s true patterns emerging out of the filth it had been living in for gods knew how long. </p><p> </p><p>“Alright, that’s the worst of it. I am going to run some new water to get the last of it off, then I will remove the worst of the tangles with some clippers.” She said softly as she pulled the plug and the cat made a tiny <em> mrrr </em> in reply, making no effort to move. The filthy water swirled down the drain and the cat began to shiver as the water level dropped. </p><p> </p><p>The moment the water had completely drained Amélie saw how truly thin the cat was. It was skin and bone, hidden under thick fur. </p><p> </p><p>“Oh, <em> pétit… </em> ” she said softly, her voice trembling. The cat <em> trilled </em> again and cracked one eye open to look at her as she began to run another fresh bathful of water, then let it drop shut again as Amélie gently rinsed the last of the dirt from its fur and drained the remaining water.</p><p>“Let’s get you out of there, little one.” </p><p> </p><p>The cat was completely limp as Amélie lifted it out of the bathtub and set it on the towel, only responding with small whimpers as she dried it off as painlessly as possible, avoiding the remaining tangled areas she would need to take care of next. The cat was at its limit, and it couldn’t even sit up now, it was so tired. </p><p> </p><p>“Time to get rid of those terrible matts, <em> oui </em>?” </p><p> </p><p>The cat let Amélie carry it back into the sitting room and lay it on a soft blanket, unmoving and exhausted while she grabbed a brush and some scissors. Most of the tangles had come out with the help of the hair conditioner, but there were still a handful that Amé now needed to remove before giving the cat a proper brushing. The cat didn’t fight her, letting her carefully snip away at unsalvageable fur. It took far less time than the bath had, and the cat seemed relieved that it was over, slowly lifting its head as Amélie disposed of all of the clumps of tangled brown fur that had been snipped away. </p><p> </p><p>“Now for something I know you will like. Brush time.” Amélie crooned as she knelt again, brush in hand, and the cat let its head drop onto its paws, eyelids drooping as Amélie began to run the brush through its soft and now thankfully tangle-free fur. It was a chocolate brown, and once it was completely dry its pattern would be visible. It was a beautiful cat, patterned or not. The cat soon relaxed onto its side, and Amélie almost cried when she heard the faint, faltering purr emanating from the poor cat’s chest as it received what may very well have been the first ever brushing in its life. Once she was finished, Amé set the brush and scissors aside and carefully gathered the clean, purring pile of brown fur into her arms, moving to lie back down on the couch. The cat opened its eyes again, and once it had gotten its bearings it sniffed at Amélie’s face, then settled down against her chest, tucking its paws under it and nestling its head under her chin as it purred louder. </p><p> </p><p>“That feels so much better, <em> oui? </em> ” Amélie murmured as she gently ran her fingers  through the cat’s clean, damp fur, feeling it arch into the touch as best it could. She heard it <em> trill </em>softly, and she tried her best not to cry as it huddled as close to her as it possibly could, leeching off her body heat until it was completely dry. It seemed that the cat had decided Amélie was a good person and meant no harm, and now it couldn’t get enough of her. </p><p> </p><p>Amélie had never had a pet before. Her parents had forbidden it, and she hadn’t had the time until she retired from performing and active duty. She had never even thought about getting a pet. Now that there was a purring loaf of brown fur cuddled onto her chest, the desire to have a pet came crashing back over her in full force, and she softly hugged the cat against her, grabbing the blanket off the floor to drape over the two of them before hugging the cat again.</p><p>After a few minutes, Amélie grabbed her book and began to read again as the cat continued to contentedly purr against her chest, and she let herself be drawn back into the story. She quickly decided that reading with a cat was one of her new favorite pastimes. The cat seemed to be enjoying it as much as Amélie was, and had fallen asleep. </p><p> </p><p>Amélie read contentedly in silence until her girlfriend got home, laden down with bags and a bit out of breath. Amélie looked up from her book as Emily set her armful of  pet supplies on the kitchen table and stretched, groaning. </p><p> </p><p>“Sorry I’m late, couldn’t find what I was looking for in three stores, had to head back to the clinic to grab some good cat food and…”</p><p> </p><p>The redhead trailed off when she noticed the open crate, and she began to look around with an expression of increasing concern on her face.</p><p> </p><p>“Amé?... Where’s the cat?” She inquired, apprehension clear in her voice as she quickly checked under the table, then walked very quickly into the sitting room to keep looking. </p><p> </p><p>Amélie was content to let her search, knowing that she would eventually figure out what had happened. She returned to her book, smirking, and listened to Emily pretend that she wasn't panicking as she checked under everything in the sitting room, muttering to herself. </p><p> </p><p>Eventually, after checking every room in the apartment, she returned to the sitting room. Her expression went from worry to shock, then to annoyance when she saw the fluffy mass on Amélie’s chest.</p><p> </p><p>“You couldn’t tell me you have her?” She grumbled, crossing her arms and pouting at the taller woman as Amélie chuckled. “That was mean, darling.”</p><p> </p><p>That got her a raised eyebrow. “So is leaving sticky notes on my forehead, <em> chérie. </em>”</p><p> </p><p>Emily pouted for a moment longer, then sighed, “That’s fair.”</p><p> </p><p>She sat down next to the couch, watching the cat sleep. “How did you get her clean without losing a finger? She hates being touched.” she asked, her expression soft as she leaned her head on Amélie’s shoulder. “She bit three people at the clinic when we tried to wash her this afternoon. How’d you do it?” </p><p> </p><p>Amélie put her book down and returned to gently stroking the cat’s now-dry fur, smiling softly. “She let me wash her because I let her set the pace, and I suppose the bowl of liver pieces I gave her helped.”</p><p> </p><p>“You fed her my post-workout snack?” </p><p>“<em> Oui, </em>She picked it herself.”</p><p> </p><p>Emily looked both exasperated and amused as Amélie scritched behind the cat’s ears, and the sleepy feline made a soft noise before lifting her head and yawning. When she saw Emily she froze, before her ears flattened against her head and she let out a low growl.</p><p> </p><p>“Perfect, you remember me.” Emily sighed, as the she-cat grumbled at her angrily, shuffling back until she was pressed against the back of the couch and flattening herself against Amé’s shoulder. </p><p> </p><p>“Guess she hates me then. I kind of earned that though, to be fair.” Emily sighed, looking a bit defeated.</p><p> </p><p>“I am keeping her.”</p><p> </p><p>Emily gave Amé a look of surprise, “I’m sorry, what? You’ve had her for less than a day.”</p><p> </p><p>Amélie rested a hand on the cat’s fluffed up fur, and it <em> trilled happily </em> at the touch, looking up at her for a long moment, then slowly settling down and glaring at Emily in silence. “ <em> Oui </em>, She is sweet, gentle, and she needs a safe place, and she seems to trust me. I’m going to keep her if she allows me to.” Amélie murmured, giving the cat another gentle ear scritch that got her purring softly again, bright blue eyes drooping shut. </p><p> </p><p>“As long as she isn’t allowed on the bed, I have no protests.” Emily sighed, sounding exasperated but amused as she leaned a little bit harder on her girlfriend’s arm for a moment. Amélie hummed in reply, continuing to gently scritch behind the contented cat’s ears.</p><p> </p><p>After a quick once-over of what was left in the fridge, Emily made up an alternate snack for herself, still complaining dramatically about the terrible betrayal that was Amé feeding the liver to their new cat. Amé rolled her eyes, smiling as the cat looked at the redhead with a very smug expression only cats seemed capable of. Emily only managed a half-hearted glare at the feline as she turned, meal finished and announced that she would be showering, then heading to bed as she had a headache and wanted to be rested enough to actually enjoy her day off tomorrow. Amélie offered no protest as the redhead disappeared into the bathroom, still mostly focused on the purring loaf of fur in her arms.</p><p> </p><p>When Emily emerged from the bathroom, towelling her hair off and wearing much more comfortable pajamas, Amélie had vanished. Emily already knew she had been betrayed a second time before she even made it to their bedroom. Sure enough, Amélie was already fast asleep with her arms snugly wrapped around a suspiciously purring lump under the sheets. When Emily lifted the corner of the blanket to investigate, she was met with a look that clearly said “What are you gonna do about it?” as the purring cat curled her tail around Amélie’s wrist and kneaded the front of her nightshirt with her small paws. There was no getting her out of that bed now, and doing so would probably have more consequences than benefits. Emily sighed, before she padded around to her side of the bed and slid under the covers as carefully as she could to avoid waking her sleeping lover. </p><p> </p><p>When her attempts to cuddle up to Amélie’s back led to a hiss and a swipe she muttered exasperatedly, “Oh for god’s sake you little demon let me spoon my girlfriend. I’m not trying to steal her.” as she tried again to wrap her arm around Amélie’s waist. The cat glared at the offending arm and made a few more less-than-pleased noises, but seemed to accept that she would need to share the raven-haired woman, and simply got as comfortable as she could without touching Emily, save for repeatedly smacking her arm with her tail until the redhead fell asleep.</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Welcome to Last Life, Last Chance! Me and Rhitta have been lovingly cooking this for a while now, hope you like it!</p><p>Please forgive me for the absence, I have had the worst writers block,, but im really trying. Hopefully I'll be able to post a LITTLE more regularly!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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